Phagocytes such as neutrophils, etc. play an important role in biophylaxis by phagocytosis, digestion and detoxication of foreign substances from the outside. Recently, it has been found that, in a host suffering from bacterial or viral infections, lowering of the function of phagocytes, lymphocytes and the like is observed and, when the function of them is lowered, such a host is liable to get infections and infections are liable to become severe. From this point of view, various studies relating to activation of the function of phagocytes and lymphocytes have been made and some drugs useful for activating the function of lymphocytes have been already developed and used in the treatment of and infectious diseases. However, for activating the function of phagocytes, only a few compounds, such as levamisole, have been known.
On the other hand, during the study of pharmacological activities of tocopheryl glycosides, the present inventors have surprisingly found that certain tocopheryl glycosides are useful for augmenting migration and phagocytosis of phagocytes such as neutrophils and thereby the function of phagocytes are activated.